novelzi Chapter 65: Ning Heng Can’t Hold It Anymore
Chapter 65: Ning Heng Can’t Hold It Anymore
Chapter 65
At this moment, the police officer handed over several sheets of paper. Although his expression remained serious, a hint of sympathy appeared in his eyes.
"We'll bring the relevant individuals in for questioning as soon as possible. Some details might need your help to recall and fill in. Little one, can you do that?" the police officer asked, crouching down.
Li Xiaoya nodded slightly, only saying four words: "I remember everything."
The police officer asked in surprise: "What do you remember? Did your mother ever tell you that she wasn't from here?"
Li Xiaoya nodded again.
[Oh my god, did she know everything all along?]
[Uh, why didn't she report it to the police?]
The commenters quickly realized they had asked a stupid question.
The police officer also asked: "Did you try to ask for help from people around you?"
Li Xiaoya's face was still covered in tears, but her tone was calm in a way that didn't seem childlike. She said softly: "Can't ask for help, mom said so."
The police officer took a deep breath: "I understand... It's not a single perpetrator, it's a group crime. You couldn't be sure if the person you asked for help might be an accomplice."
Li Xiaoya only said: "Don't trust anyone, that's what mom taught me too."
When she was very young, she didn't quite understand what this meant.
Later, as she grew a little older and saw all kinds of people in the village, she understood.
And now, she understood even more.
It turned out that her mother's words didn't just refer to the villagers, but also to people like Wei Lin.
The police officer sighed, not knowing what to say for a moment.
It was extremely quiet both inside and outside the room.
[I don't know what to say...]
[She's young, but she understands a lot. Yet she can't say anything, because she doesn't know if she's facing a wolf in sheep's clothing]
[Does anyone remember when the show first aired, everyone was saying Li Xiaoya liked to lie and steal? Doesn't that narrative seem terrifying now?]
[Damn! Once that perception is established in the public mind, no one would believe anything Li Xiaoya says! If her relatives hadn't come looking for her, her mother would never have been able to clear her name!]
[It's so scary, too scary. At that point, wouldn't they be able to say whatever they wanted about her?]
[I've been saying all along that there's something very wrong with this village! Really wrong! The so-called public perception of Li Xiaoya being a bad child was just their preemptive measure to cover up their crimes.]
[All I can say is, thank goodness for Sheng Yuxiao]
Sheng Yuxiao frowned deeply, also thinking about this issue - thankfully he had come here.
What if on the day he arrived, he hadn't met Li Xiaoya?
What if he hadn't been unable to sleep due to the unfamiliar village environment, gotten up, and accidentally overheard the conversation between the village chief and his son...
What would have happened to Li Xiaoya?
Would she have been completely overwhelmed by their willful slander?
"Your mother... was really a very good mother," the police officer finally managed to say after a long pause.
He felt unable to look at the expression on Li Xiaoya's face any longer and hurriedly said: "Don't be afraid, you have relatives now. Those bad people will be brought to justice soon!"
With that, the police officer walked out and called to his team: "Let's go!"
[Are they going to make arrests?]
[Li's grandfather has already been arrested, and the village chief is still in custody. Who else is left?]
"I should have known they were all bastards, not a single good one among them..." Sheng Yuxiao said coldly. "The money the show gave you shouldn't have been returned to them either. Your father had already run away, why should you bear this debt?"
Li Xiaoya said: "It's not like that. Aunt Man and the others aren't that bad. If they were really bad people, they wouldn't have been tricked out of their money. They're the ones who trick others out of money."
[Damn, that makes sense!]
"Aunt Man doesn't have a good life either. She used to advise my mom to accept her current life, and mom didn't get angry with her. Mom said Aunt Man just hadn't seen other possibilities in life, and this was the only path she could think of..."
"Just because Aunt Man couldn't help me doesn't mean she's a bad person."
"There are others in the village like Aunt Man. They would drink pesticide if they lost 800 yuan. Money is very important to them. If we can return it to them, we should."
Sheng Yuxiao sighed and said nothing more.
It was as if her brain had been struck by a sudden impact.
Without a doubt, Xu Qiulai was also a great beauty.
In a child's eyes, there's a natural affinity for older women who look similar.
Li Xiaoya's eyes immediately turned red, and her breathing quickened for a moment.
Then she carefully took the welcome gift from Xu Qiulai's hand.
The still-delicate fingers of the seven-year-old child gently, as if with a sense of nostalgia and longing, touched Xu Qiulai's palm.
Xu Qiulai was taken aback.
"Thank you," Li Xiaoya moved her lips and said softly.
Xu Qiulai came back to her senses and said: "No need to thank me. On the contrary, I should thank you for taking care of Sheng Yuxiao these past days."
[Haha, it seems Mrs. Xu has been watching the show carefully]
[Ugh, today's events make me feel like crying and laughing at the same time]
[Ms. Xu is so nice, she even brought a gift for Xiaoya]
"Would you like to open it?" Xu Qiulai spoke without any hint of condescension, despite addressing a child. She said, "I hope you'll like it."
Li Xiaoya sniffled softly and lowered her head to unwrap the gift.
Sheng Yuxiao glanced at her reddened fingers from the cold and said, "Let me do it."
It was indeed very cold in the mountains; one's hands would freeze quickly away from the fireplace.
Sheng Yuxiao swiftly unwrapped the gift box.
[Oh my God! It's a Van Cleef & Arpels four-leaf clover!]
Xu Qiulai leaned in and said, "May it bring you luck."
Li Xiaoya nodded, carefully studying Xu Qiulai's face to commit it to memory.
"Mrs. Sheng?" Wei Lin interjected, saying, "Thank you for Mrs. Sheng's gift."
Xu Qiulai shook her head, not acknowledging Wei Lin's words.
"We'll be going now," Wei Lin said with a polite nod.
Li Xiaoya turned back, saying, "My things..."
"You'll have new clothes when you get back, everything will be new," Wei Lin replied.
Sheng Yuxiao intervened, "Wait a moment. At least let her take the gifts I gave to Li Xiaoya."
Wei Lin hesitated briefly before nodding with a smile, "Of course. Young Master Sheng has been quite generous as well."
The comment was irritating to hear.
What did he mean by 'generous'?
Sheng Yuxiao coldly replied, "Though my time in Li Family Village wasn't long, the bond between us and Li Xiaoya can't be measured in monetary terms."
This was a clear message to Wei Lin: don't think you can bully Li Xiaoya just because she seems to lack support!
Wei Lin's expression remained unchanged, as if he hadn't caught the underlying meaning. He smiled and said, "That's wonderful. It's fortunate that she has you, Young Master Sheng, looking out for her. In the future, I'll be sure to prepare gifts and personally come to express our gratitude."
This statement again emphasized that Li Xiaoya was close to them, and had no real connection to Sheng Yuxiao and the others.
So Wei Lin, as her "family," would thank them on Li Xiaoya's behalf.
Sheng Yuxiao's lips twitched slightly, finding the whole thing rather pointless, and decided not to say anything more.
But Ning Heng couldn't hold back anymore.
Ning Heng shouted, "Wait! I still have something to say! Li Xiaoya, don't go yet..."
Li Xiaoya looked at him, puzzled.
Ning Heng, finally unable to contain his pride, said, "Li Xiaoya! My work exhibited at the Louvre has won an award!"
[What?]
The audience was stunned.
[What's this about now?]